Brassavola nodosa [L.]Lindley 1831 SUBGENUS Brassavola SECTION Cuneilabia
Photo by © Allen Black
Plant in situ San Gil Colombia 7/14
Photo by © Jay Pfahl
Drawing by © L O Williams
To 
MOSTLY 
Common Name The Knobby Brassavola - Lady of the Night
Flower Size 3 1/2" [8.75 cm]
Found in Mexico, Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Caymans, Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, Puerto Rico?, French Guiana, Surinam, Guyana, Venzuela, Colombia and Brazil from sea level to about 500 meters as a hardy, medium sized, hot growing epiphyte or lithophyte with cylindrical, short stems enveloped by scarious sheaths with a single, sub-terete, sulcate, acute-apiculate leaf. It has a nice, citrus fragrance at night and the flowers are close to 4" across and occur in the spring, summer and fall but are possible at any time of the year on a 8" [20 cm] long, bracteate inflorescence that arises on a newly maturing psuedobulb that carries a single, long, sub-terete leaf that carries up to 6 flowers. They are and can be quite salt tolerant.
Kew considers Brassavola venosa and Brassavola grandiflora as Synonyms of B nodosa, I have kept them separate for now.
I have found them growing on the roots of mangroves in Cozumel, Mexico at sea level where the ocean occasionally can splash them.
I collected a seedling plant in Honda, Colombia in July of 1995 and mounted it on wood, gave it moderate shade and high humidity and it's first bloom opened 6/7/97.
Synonyms Bletia nodosa Rchb.f 1861; Bletia rhopalorrhachis (Rchb.f.) Rchb.f. 1862; Cymbidium nodosum Sw. 1799; *Epidendrum nodosum L. 1753; Javieria nodosa (L.) Archila, Chiron & Szlach. 2013; Javieria rhopalorrhachis (Rchb.f.) Archila, Chiron & Szlach. 2013
References W3 Tropicos, Kew Monocot list , IPNI ; Lankester's Epidendra Website CR ;
Sp. Pl. 2: 953. Linnaeus 1753 as Epidendrum nodosa;
Nova Acta Regiae Soc. Sci. Upsal., ser. 2, 6: 73 Sw 1799 as Cymbidium nodosum
* Gen. Sp. Orchid. Pl.: 114 Lindley 1831
Bonplandia 4: 216 Rchb.f 1856;
Ann. Bot. Syst. 6: 437. 1862 as Bletia nodosa;
Ann. Bot. Syst. 6: 437. 1862 as Bletia rhopalorrhachis
Xenia Orchidaceae vol 2:65 Rchb.f 1862 as Bletia nodosa;
Xenia Orchidaceae vol 2:65 Rchb.f 1862 as Bletia rhopalorrhachis;
Symbolae Antillanae Vol VI Orchidaceae Urban 1909;
Flora of Jamaica Fawcett & Rendle 1910;
Die Orchideen Schlechter 1915;
Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 17: 49. Panama Schlechter 1922;
Repert. Sp. Nov. Regni. Veg. Beih. 19: 222. Costa Rica Schlechter 1923;
The Orchids of Panama L.O. Williams & P Allen 1946
The Orchids of Panama L.O. Williams & P Allen 1946 drawing fide;
Orchids of Malaya Holtum 1953;
Orchids of Guatemala & Belize Ames & Correwll 1954/85
Orchids of Guatemala & Belize Ames & Correwll 1954/85 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 26 No 2 1957;
AOS Bulletin Vol 27 No 6 1958;
Venezuelan Orchids Illustrated Vol 1 Dunsterville & Garay 1959 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 30 No 5 1961 drawing plant only;
AOS Bulletin Vol 31 No 1 1962 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 31 # 2 1962 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 31 #5 1962 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 32 No 10 1963;
Encyclopedia of Cultivated Orchids Hawkes 1965 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 35 No 2 1966 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 36 #2 1967 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 36 No 9 1967;
AOS Bulletin Vol 39 No 4 1970 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 39 No 7 1970 photo fide;
Flora de Venezuela Volumen 15 Parte 3 foldats 1970 drawing fide;
Las Orquedias De El Salvador Hamer 1974 drawing fide;
Die Orchideen 3 Auflage Bd 1 Sonderabdruck aus Schlechter Lieferung 10 576 - 632 Brieger, Maatsch and Senghas 1977;
AOS Bulletin Vol 47 No 6 1978 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 48 No 5 1979;
Orquídea (Mexico City), n.s., 7[3]: 1979;
Orchids of Venezuela, An Illustrated Field Guide Vol 1 Dunsterville & Garay 1979 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 49 No 8 1980 photo fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 009 Dodson 1980 drawing fide;
Las Orquideas De El Salvador Vol 3 Hamer 1981 drawing fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum Plate 622 Hamer 1982 Drawing fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 47 No 3 1983 photo fide;
An Introdution to the orchids of Mexico Wiard 1987 photos fide;
Venezuelan Orchids Dunsterville 1987 drawing/photo fide;
An Introduction to the Orchids Of Mexico Wiard 1987;
Simon & Schuster's Guide to Orchids Fanfani& Rossi 1988;
Selbyana Vol 10 Orchids of Central America Hamer 1988 drawing fide;
Orchids Travel By Air A Pictoral Safari Mulder, Mulder-Roelfsema and Schuiteman 1990 photo fide;
Native Colombian Orchids COS Vol 1 1990 photo fide;
Icones Orchidacearum I plate 4 Hagsater & Salazar 1990 drawing fide;
The Manual of Cultivated Orchids Bechtel, Cribb, Laurent 1992 photo fide;
Illustrated Encyclopedia of Orchids Pridgeon 1992;
AOS Bulletin Vol 62 No 5 1993 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 62 No 7 1993 photo fide;
Icones Planetarum Tropicarum plate 1506 Mora & Atwood 1993 drawing fide;
Field Guide to the Orchids of Costa rica and Panama Dressler 1993;
AOS Bulletin Vol 63 No 3 1994 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 58 No 2 1994 photo fide;
Manual of Orchids Stewart 1995;
An Orchid Flora Of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands Ackerman 1995;
AOS Bulletin Vol 65 No 9 1996 photo fide;
Venezuela, Paraiso de Orquideas Romero 1997 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 66 No 9 1997 photo;
AOS Bulletin Vol 67 No 2 1998 photo fide;
The Cattleyas and Their Relatives Vol V Withner 1998 drawing/photo;
Guatemala Y Sus Orquideas Behar & Tinschert 1998 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 68 No 5 1999 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 63 #3 1999 photo fide;
Orchidaceae Antillanae Nir 2000;
Orchids of Venezuela [An illustrated field guide] Vol. 1 Ramiro and Carnevali 2000 drawing fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 71 No 4 2002 photo fide;
Botanica's Orchids Laurel Glenn 2002;
AOS Bulletin Vol 72 No 5 2003 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 72 No 11 2003 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 2 2005 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 74 No 7 2005 photo fide;
Flora's Orchids Nash & La Croix 2005;
The World's Most Beautiful Orchids Allikas & Nash 2005 photo fide;
Vanishing Beauty, Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 1 Pupulin 2005 photo fide;
Vanishing Beauty, Native Costa Rican Orchids Vol 1 Pupulin 2005 as B grandiflora photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 1 2006 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 2 2006 photo fide; AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 6 2006 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 75 No 12 2006 photo fide;
Orquideas de la Serrania del Baudo Misas Urreta 2006 as B grandiflora;
AOS Bulletin Vol 76 No 7 2007 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 76 #11 2007 photo fide;
Orchid Digest vol 71 #4 Oct, Nov, Dec 2007 drawing/photo fide;
Orchid Digest vol 71 #4 Oct, Nov, Dec 2007 as B rhopalorrhachis drawing/photo fide;
Miniature Orchids Frownie 2007;
AOS Bulletin Vol 77 No 12 2008 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 78 #3 2009 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin vol 78 No 7 2009 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin vol 78 No 11 2009 photo fide;
Orchid Species of Peru Zelenko Bermudez 2009 photo fide;
Orchids of Costa Rica Vol 1 Morales 2009 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 79 #3 2010 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 80 #3 2011 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 80 #5 2011 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 81 #7 2012 photo fide;
Orchids of French Guiana Szatchetko, Veyret etal 2012 drawing/photo fide;
Guia de Orquideas de Chiapas Carlos Rommel Beutelspacher Baigts 2013 photo fide;
Richardiana 14: 100 Archila, Chiron & Szlach. 2013 as Javieria nodosa;
Orchid Digest Vol 78 #4 2014 photo fide;
Orchids, A Colombian Treasure Vol 1 Ortiz & Uribe 2014 drawing/photo fide
Orchid Flora of the Greater Antilles Ackerman 2014;
Orchids of Tropical America an introduction and guide Meisel 2014 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 79 #3 2015 photo/drawings fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 79 #4 2015 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 84 #4 2015 photo fide;
Orchid Digest Vol 80 #2 2016;
AOS Bulletin Vol 85 #12 2016 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 86 #4 2017 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 87 #10 2018 photo fide;
Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018 as Javieria nodosa photo fide;
Orchid Genera and Species in Guatemala Archila, Szlachchetko, Chiron, Lipinska, Mystkowska and Bertolini 2018 as Javieri rhopalorrhachis;
AOS Bulletin Vol 88 #11 2019 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 89 #1 2020 photo fide;
AOS Bulletin Vol 89 #11 2020 photo fide;
Materials to the Orchid Flora of Colombia Vol IV: 506 Szlatchetko & Kolanowska 2023 as Javieria nodosadrawing/photo fide;
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